The Baylor University Bears (12-4) mens basketball team will be 4-point spreads home underdogs to second-ranked Kansas (17-0) Monday night (9:30 pm ET, ESPN) in a battle of BIG 12 contenders at Ferrell Center in Waco, Texas. Now that conference play is in full swing across the BIG 12, an ability to win on the road in tough venue will be crucial to winning the league championship. Kansas has already demonstrated some road muscle winning at Iowa State last Wednesday while Baylor hasn't, losing at Iowa State on Saturday (Jan 15). Keep tabs of the most up to date NCAA Basketball Betting Spreads as you make your plays all season.
Betting trends show the Jayhawks have the public's confidence for Monday's game as 77 percent of side bets show. The public's also wagering, by 80 percent) for a SU Kansas win. The game's combined score total is expected to go OVER the posted 141 points by 98 percent of the wagering public.
While the Bears have four losses this season, they are 11-0 on home court at the Ferrell Center. The Bears four losses were to Gonzaga (64-68) at American Airlines Center in Dallas, Washington State and Florida State in Hawaii and at Iowa State in Ames. Seven of the Baylor's home wins came against lower level competition. Their only home win against quality competiton came agaisnt Arizona State on Dec. 2, winning 68-54. In true road games, played on the oppositions home court, the Bears are 1-1 both SU and ATS winning in Lubbock at Texas Tech and the previously mentioned loss at Iowa State.
Kansas has been flawless winning all its 17 games SU, but is below .500 covering the betting spread going 5-7 in lined games. Five games the Jayhawks played were not lined due to the lower level of competition. In KU's last 10 games, nine of which were lined, the Jayhawks were terrible ATS going 2-7. Odds makers often over-line power teams like Kansas. The Jayhawks are 1-3 ATS on the road this season.
The Jayhawks average 83.1 points and give up 60.8 for a +22.2 scoring margin. Kansas also leads the battle of the boards with a +7.9 rebound margin. Kansas leads the Big 12 in four different statistical categories: scoring margin (+22.2), field goal percentage (51.8), three-point field goal percentage defense (24.9) and assists (18.5). Junior forward Marcus Morris has posted back-to-back double-doubles with career-highs in points (33) and rebounds (13) at Iowa State (Jan. 12) and 16 points and 11 rebounds against Nebraska (Jan. 15). Marcus leads Kansas in scoring at 16.7 points per game.
The Bears, currently riding a 15-game home winning streak dating back to last season, average 73.4 points per game and allows 59.4 points for a per game scoring margin of 14.1. Baylor dominates the boards with a +9.0 rebound margin and forces 16.4 turnovers per game.
Senior guard LaceDarius Dunn leads the Big 12 in scoring at 22.3 points per game. His 4.2 three-pointers per game are also best in the conference and he averages 4.7 rebounds per contest. Junior forward Quincy Acy leads Baylor in rebounds with a 7.9 average, which is third in the Big 12. He scores 13.6 points per game and has a team-high 21 blocked shots.
College Basketball Predictions: Baylor will pull out all the stops against the visiting Jayhawks. My pick in this game is Baylor to cover as a plus-4 home underdog. BEST BET – Baylor +4.
